I didn’t always agree with all of her positions, and sometimes she was a bit prone to take the cheap shot (though she always did so with incredible homespun panache), but Molly Ivins was still one of the greats of modern modern political commentary.
Molly Ivins, whose biting columns mixed liberal populism with an irreverent Texas wit, died at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at her home in Austin after an up-and-down battle with breast cancer she had waged for seven years. She was 62.
Hers was a unique voice, and it will be missed.
Four quotes by her from my WIST database:
Yes, the bad-lawyer felony is the leading cause of the death penalty in Texas.
The single most dangerous thing you can do in politics is shut off information from people who don’t agree with you. Surround yourself with sycophants, listen only to the yea-sayers … then stick a fork in it, you’re done. — “Election Denial,” 3 Apr. 2001
There’s a weird Republican schizophrenia: They want welfare mothers to work and working mothers to stay home. — “Winning Women,” 2 Aug. 2001
Keep fighting for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don’t you forget to have fun doin’ it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cat, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin’ ass and celebratin’ the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was.
I had the good fortune to hear her speak at Illinois Wesleyan University a few years ago, to a packed house. Liked her a lot, and can easily forgive her cheap shots as they were a sometimes thing compared to the constant barrage from some on the right to whom she was often compared by her enemies.
I will miss her.